If this is your first visit, be sure to
check out the FAQ by clicking the
link above. You may have to register
before you can post: click the register link above to proceed. To start viewing messages,
select the forum that you want to visit from the selection below.

New Catalyst For Linux Driver Improves Performance

11-17-2012, 12:10 PM

Phoronix: New Catalyst For Linux Driver Improves Performance

Weeks after NVIDIA released a new Linux driver to massively improve its OpenGL performance in large part to make the Source Engine and Valve's games run better on Linux, AMD is out with a similar Catalyst update. The latest Catalyst Linux beta is said to bring "significant performance improvements" for Left 4 Dead 2...

Unless AMD releases a feature updated Legacy driver, you won't be able to play (at least) this Source game
using the proprietary driver on a still quite powerful GPU as the Radeon HD 4800 is.
Let's see if such a Legacy driver will be released. I doubt it. :/

Comment

I'm a strong proponent of open drivers and, indeed, I'm using r600g now (stable mesa 9.0).
But it's still not performing sufficiently good, imho.
For instance, 'Trine 2' and antialiasing* runs very slow on my configuration
unless I go for a low resolution, while the game is really fast on windows.
The hardware configuration is capable of providing high framerates.
Killing floor doesn't even provide an antialiasing mode for the open driver.
I guess for some upcoming games the open driver is not suitable in the current state (performance-wise).

I can't say if and how r600g works with TF2 as I was not selected as a beta tester.

[*] Trine 2 gives a list of antialiasing modes. The lowest setting is called 'medium FXAA', which I tried.
It seems to work, i.e. it's visually way more appealing compared to 'no antialiasing'. I was a bit surprised.
Is it actually implemented in the open AMD drivers (I thought just MLAA is)? But, as I said, it works "somehow".

Comment

[*] Trine 2 gives a list of antialiasing modes. The lowest setting is called 'medium FXAA', which I tried.
It seems to work, i.e. it's visually way more appealing compared to 'no antialiasing'. I was a bit surprised.
Is it actually implemented in the open AMD drivers (I thought just MLAA is)? But, as I said, it works "somehow".

It's not the driver implementing that, it's the app. Also explains why you don't see it in other apps.

Comment

I can't say if and how r600g works with TF2 as I was not selected as a beta tester.

I read a comment on steam that indicated some one was running TF2 using r600g on a HD4200. The same topic has a post by a Valve developer infering that it requred the latest fglrx. I will test it out by monday on one or two Radeon cards and post my findings.

Comment

I read a comment on steam that indicated some one was running TF2 using r600g on a HD4200. The same topic has a post by a Valve developer infering that it requred the latest fglrx. I will test it out by monday on one or two Radeon cards and post my findings.

That would be great. Which cards are those?
So far I only read comments of beta testers running the proprietary NVidia/AMD drivers.